Keys To Life: What’s On My Keychain (v3.0)

Every year, or whenever I can, I take a little bit of time out of my busy schedule to write about what I’ve learned in the past year. i call them my “Keys To Life,” each rule being a sort of ,”Key,” I take along with me, on an imaginary keychain, everywhere I go. This year, I’ve added new rules, changed old ones, and merged some things together. I do this purely for myself, to make sure I’m headed in the right direction, but as always, I love sharing and getting feedback. So here it is: three years, three different blogs later, I present to you, my newest version of Keys To Life! Enjoy!

TEN THINGS I’VE LEARNED AT 23:

In no specific order,

1. Thank people. Thank people often, but MEAN IT. Say sorry, but only when sorry is due.

In my last Key blog, I wrote about only saying sorry when you really mean it. This goes the same way. We live in a world where we say, “sorry,” and, “thank you,” to one another so often it becomes sort of, in-sensitized, in a way. Say, “thank you,” to people often, but mean it. Be grateful for everything, especially for those small, special things. This will take you a long way.

This rule was made clear to me by my good friend, and fellow employee on my first day at TRUE Sole, about two years ago. In other words, never let anyone make you feel lower than yourself. A person should have pride in who he/she is and in what he/she does. AND while having that pride, he or she should not force another to feel lower than him/her. We are all equals and should be helping each other out. Not competing to be the best. “Live together. Die Alone.”- LOST

3. Befriend your colleagues and coworkers. NETWORK.

Again, another shameless “networking,” rule. I know, I know, it gets redundant year after year, but I can’t stress to you enough how important it is to meet people. For instance, I’m a music media major, I HAVE TO be friends with the people in my classes. These people are the future. THESE people could be my bosses one day. AND doesn’t everyone want to be on their bosses good side?

Besides that, join organizations and associations that will put you in contact with well, everyone. You never know who you’ll meet!

4. It’s all about the journey!…and the sweet success, but don’t forget to account your journey!

Making my acquaintance with 2012 was awesome, but not at the time it was happening! I planned to be at a certain place all night, but getting there through public transportation was somewhat of a journey. Even though I spent New Years at a different place than I originally assumed, the journey was something I will never forget. What I’m saying is, even though the road to wherever you may be going might be super bumpy, make sure to take account of that. These are the times when you’re building bonds, strengthening relationships and working through the difficult time together. Besides, all of this makes the celebration at the end that much sweeter.

5. Never assume.

Do not EVER assume anything. You might be interpreting something in a completely different way than someone else. Let others help you understand instead of just jumping to conclusions. Ask questions. Get answers. What YOU THINK is going on, might not be ACTUALITY.

6. Make mistakes.

In 2011-2012, I made ALOT of them. Especially ones that showed up on social networking sites like Facebook, etc (No, not nude photos). Although I did make alot of mistakes, I learned from them. Life is long and you have tons of time to learn. So yes, make mistakes, make LOTS of them but learn from them, accept that they happened, say sorry when you should, AND DON’T REPEAT.

“There are no failures on a long enough road.”- Donald Glover/Childish Gambino

7. Stop stalking, “that certain person,” on Facebook!

Ok, I’ll admit it, I’ll snoop around your Facebook if I haven’t seen you in a bajillion years and I want to know, “What’s up?” without having to ask but what I mean here is stop continuously checking the Facebook of your boyfriend/girlfriend/ladyfriend/gentlemenfriend/crush/bestfriend etc. Of course, read what comes up on your newsfeed to stay relevant, “like,” when liking is due, “poke,” when you should but stop singling out that certain person’s page. I mean, if Facebook is the way you communicate with someone, by all means, do what works for you. But for alot of people, checking a close friend’s Facebook too often usually breeds jealousy and assumption(and you already know how I feel about assumptions). The truth is on Facebook, but there are also alot of things that appear to be truth, but are really not.

8. You’re going to have a pivotal moment in your life when you realize why you are, who you are and why you do, what you do.

First, don’t panic. Take things step by step. Without saying too much, I recently realized why a deal with things a certain way, and why things always seem to fall within the same cycle. For me, it wasn’t a very good cycle to be a part of, so things had to change. I know this all sounds vague, but it’s not something I’m ready (and maybe never will be) to publish on the Internet but here’s a hint for dealing with this kind of thing: If you realize something is going wrong in your life, it might be because of your upbringing. Do not blame your parents, they were raised a certain way as well. Try not to blame anyone. Focus on breaking that cycle and making yourself a better person.

9. When something terrible happens, cry about it for 10 minutes. Then, stop and figure out what you can do about it.

I owe this one to Oprah Winfrey. It’s probably one of the things I repeat to myself on the regular, besides my new mantra, “Britney Spears made it through 2007, so you can certainly make it through today.” But seriously, think about it. Something bad happens, you’re sad but you can’t stay sad forever. Learn to pick yourself up(seriously, ON YOUR OWN), and decide what you’re going to do about it. There’s usually a ton of options. Pick what’s right. Go with your gut. Get advice from friends too. It usually helps!

On a sidenote, this rule kind of goes along with: Life isn’t fair. And by 23, believe me, I’ve realized life really isn’t fair. So suck it up and figure out what you’re going to do. There’s ways around everything if you look. You’re probably just hanging on to the idea that your situation will fair out ideally for you. It will, but you might just have to take a different route.

10. Sometimes, you really do need to plan.

I know it sounds nerdy, but I recently sat down and seriously thought about my three year plan, five year plan and the ever so long from now, but not really, ten year plan. Maybe this is just me freaking out about my impending graduation here, but I can’t be a retail salesperson and freelancer for life!

While I’m all about living in the present moment, sometimes you need to know what you’re planning to do later on down the road. Things change, I know, but it keeps you calmer knowing you have some structure or life plan in the books!

With all of this planning, make sure to keep your priorities straight. Stick to what you believe and realize that some things in life need to be prioritized higher than others. Be ahead of the game and know what you want. Majoring in partying, smoking, drinking and celebrating is fun in the present moment, but will that make you successful later on?

Postnotes:

So there it is. More rules I believe in and things I know for sure, now that I’m 23. It’s really crazy, looking back on my first and second set of rules and remembering exactly where I was as that time. I still believe in everything I’ve written and hope that never changes as I become older. We’ll see. Cheers!